Sox Deal For 3d Baseman

January 24, 1989|By Ed Sherman.

For Eddie Williams, the land of opportunity now lies in Chicago.

The White Sox acquired the third baseman Monday from Cleveland for pitchers Joel Davis and Ed Wojna. Sox General Manager Larry Himes said he hopes Williams, a right-handed hitter with power, will be able to step in at third and platoon with incumbent Steve Lyons.

``I hope he sees that he`s got an opportunity here,`` Himes said. ``He`s got a legitimate chance to play at the major league level for us.``

Williams, 24, has waited a long time to hear those words. He`s been stuck at Cleveland behind Brook Jacoby, which forced him to spend the majority of the last two seasons in Triple A. The Sox don`t have any Jacobys on their roster.

``I`m thrilled to death about the trade,`` said Williams, who lives in San Diego. ``I know I have the ability to play in the big leagues.``

With Williams in the fold, Himes now hopes to solve his problems at second base by acquiring Joey Cora from San Diego. Talks have heated up between the two clubs, although the Sox reportedly aren`t keen on the Padres` demand for reliever John Davis to be included in the deal. Davis is having an excellent winter in the Dominican Republic.

``I`m still talking with San Diego,`` Himes said. ``I`m hoping to get something done before spring training.``

Himes had been after Williams for more than a year. Last winter, the Indians wanted Jose DeLeon and Bill Long in trade.

Williams, the Mets` first-round pick and the fourth selection overall in the 1983 draft, is considered a prospect with a question mark. He enjoyed two successful seasons at the plate at Triple A. In 1988, he hit .301 with 12 homers and 58 runs batted in in 101 games at Colorado Springs; he missed three weeks in May after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery. He hit .291 with 22 homers and 85 RBIs at Buffalo in 1987.

Despite those numbers, Williams couldn`t stick on the major league roster for than a couple of brief September callups. He hit .190 with 1 homer in 10 games with the Indians last year.

``I felt I was capable of being a big-league third baseman in 1988,``

Williams said. ``I had decent enough numbers to advance to the varsity. But it was a situation where they had Brook Jacoby in front of me, and I didn`t get the chance. I don`t know what the Sox plans are for me, but hopefully I can open a few eyes in spring training.``

The Sox aren`t worried about Williams` defense, even though he committed 26 errors in 88 games last year. Himes called the Colorado Springs infield

``treacherous.``

``I`m not going to make any excuses,`` Williams said. ``When I got the call (to the Indians), I made only one error in 10 games. I picked everything that was near me.``

The Sox had high hopes for Joel Davis, their No. 1 pick in the 1983 draft, but he`s struggled in the big leagues. Last year, he was 0-1 with a 6.75 earned run average in five games with the Sox; he`s 8-14 with a 4.91 ERA for his career. Himes said neither Davis nor Wojna would have made the Sox`s staff this year.